Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A22—BUTCHERING; MEAT TREATMENT; PROCESSING POULTRY OR FISH
  • A22C—PROCESSING MEAT, POULTRY, OR FISH
  • A22C13/00—Sausage casings
  • A22C13/0013—Chemical composition of synthetic sausage casings
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C48/00—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C48/022—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor characterised by the choice of material
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C48/00—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C48/03—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor characterised by the shape of the extruded material at extrusion
  • B29C48/09—Articles with cross-sections having partially or fully enclosed cavities, e.g. pipes or channels
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C48/00—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C48/15—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor incorporating preformed parts or layers, e.g. extrusion moulding around inserts
  • B29C48/154—Coating solid articles, i.e. non-hollow articles
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C48/00—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C48/25—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
  • B29C48/30—Extrusion nozzles or dies
  • B29C48/32—Extrusion nozzles or dies with annular openings, e.g. for forming tubular articles
  • B29C48/34—Cross-head annular extrusion nozzles, i.e. for simultaneously receiving moulding material and the preform to be coated
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C48/00—Extrusion moulding, i.e. expressing the moulding material through a die or nozzle which imparts the desired form; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C48/25—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
  • B29C48/88—Thermal treatment of the stream of extruded material, e.g. cooling
  • B29C48/919—Thermal treatment of the stream of extruded material, e.g. cooling using a bath, e.g. extruding into an open bath to coagulate or cool the material
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C71/00—After-treatment of articles without altering their shape; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C71/0009—After-treatment of articles without altering their shape; Apparatus therefor using liquids, e.g. solvents, swelling agents
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08J—WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H
  • C08J5/00—Manufacture of articles or shaped materials containing macromolecular substances
  • C08J5/18—Manufacture of films or sheets
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A22—BUTCHERING; MEAT TREATMENT; PROCESSING POULTRY OR FISH
  • A22C—PROCESSING MEAT, POULTRY, OR FISH
  • A22C13/00—Sausage casings
  • A22C2013/002—Sausage casings made by extrusion
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A22—BUTCHERING; MEAT TREATMENT; PROCESSING POULTRY OR FISH
  • A22C—PROCESSING MEAT, POULTRY, OR FISH
  • A22C13/00—Sausage casings
  • A22C2013/002—Sausage casings made by extrusion
  • A22C2013/0023—Sausage casings made by extrusion coextruded together with the food product
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C71/00—After-treatment of articles without altering their shape; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C71/0009—After-treatment of articles without altering their shape; Apparatus therefor using liquids, e.g. solvents, swelling agents
  • B29C2071/0045—Washing using non-reactive liquids
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29K—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES B29B, B29C OR B29D, RELATING TO MOULDING MATERIALS OR TO MATERIALS FOR MOULDS, REINFORCEMENTS, FILLERS OR PREFORMED PARTS, e.g. INSERTS
  • B29K2005/00—Use of polysaccharides or derivatives as moulding material
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29K—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES B29B, B29C OR B29D, RELATING TO MOULDING MATERIALS OR TO MATERIALS FOR MOULDS, REINFORCEMENTS, FILLERS OR PREFORMED PARTS, e.g. INSERTS
  • B29K2105/00—Condition, form or state of moulded material or of the material to be shaped
  • B29K2105/0058—Liquid or visquous
  • B29K2105/0061—Gel or sol
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29L—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULAR ARTICLES
  • B29L2031/00—Other particular articles
  • B29L2031/712—Containers; Packaging elements or accessories, Packages
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08J—WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H
  • C08J2305/00—Characterised by the use of polysaccharides or of their derivatives not provided for in groups C08J2301/00 or C08J2303/00

Definitions

• This invention relates to poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casings and methods of their preparation.
• Glucose-based polysaccharides and their derivatives can be of potential industrial application.
• Cellulose is a typical example of such a polysaccharide and is comprisedof beta-1,4-D-glycosidic linkages of hexopyranose units. Cellulose is used for several commercial applications such as in manufacture of fibers, films (cellophane), sponges and food casings.
• Casings are soft cylindrical or tubular containers used to contain food such as a sausage mix. Casings can be of natural origins or artificial. Natural casings are obtained from animal intestines. Manufactured artificial casings are made of cellulose, collagen or synthetic materials.
• casings made of natural materials fall into two groups: a) casings made from organic plant material, namely, cellulose and b) casings made from animal by-products, namely, collagen; 2) casings made of synthetic substances deriving from thermoplastic materials including plastics or polymers such as polyamide, polypropylene or polyethylene.
• Cellulose for industrial applications is derived from wood pulp. Specifically, cellulose, usually from cotton linters or wood pulp, is processed to make viscose, which is then extruded into clear, tough casings for making wieners and franks. Cellulosic viscose solutions are combined with wood pulp to make large diameter fibrous casings for bologna, cotto salami, smoke ham and other products sliced for sandwiches. This type is also permeable to smoke and water vapor. The can be flat or shirred, depending on application, and can be pretreated with smoke, caramel, color or other surface treatments.
• Solutioning of cellulose is a difficult procedure.
• the most commonly used process for dissolution of cellulose is the 'viscose process' where the cellulose is converted to cellulose xanthate made by treating a cellulose compound with sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide (see, for example, U.S. Patent No. 4,590,107 and 5,795,523 ).
• the use of this process involves toxic chemicals and significant environmental costs. Industry is seeking an alternative to the viscose process because of the difficulties in handling carbon disulfide.
• tube-making processes have the specific problem of removing the carbon disulfide gas that evolves during coagulation and collects in the middle of the tube. While a viscose flat-film process can run continuosly even while carbon disulfide is removed, a viscose tube process must be intermittently interupted to puncture the tube for removal of carbon disulfide the gas that collects inside the tube.
• glucan polymers with alpha-1,3-glycoside linkages, have been shown to possess significant advantages.
• U.S. Patent No. 7,000,000 disclosed preparation of a polysaccharide fiber comprising a polymer with hexose units, wherein at least 50% of the hexose units within the polymer were linked via alpha-1 ,3-glycoside linkages, and a number average degree of polymerization of at least 100.
• a glucosyltransferase enzyme from Streptococcus salivarius (gtfJ) was used to produce the polymer.
• the polymer formed a solution when it was dissolved in a solvent or in a mixture comprising a solvent. From this solution continuous, strong, cotton-like fibers, highly suitable for use in textiles, were spun and used.
• the invention concerns a process for making a polysaccharide food casing comprising: (a) dissolving polysaccharide in a solvent composition to provide a solution of polysaccharide; (b) extruding the solution of polysaccharide into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel; (c) washing the tube-shaped wet gel with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the tube-shaped wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the tube-shaped wet gel to form a polysaccharide food casing, characterized in that the polysaccharide is poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan and the process does not use carbon disulfide.
• the solvent composition is an aqueous base.
• the aqueous base is selected from the group consisting of aqueous potassium hydroxide, aqueous sodium hydroxide and aqueous tetraethyl ammonium hydroxide.
• the solvent composition further comprises a solubility additive, a plasticizer additive or a mixture thereof.
• the coagulation bath comprises an aqueous acid or methanol.
• the aqueous acid comprises aqueous sulfuric acid.
• the coagulation bath further comprises sodium sulfate, boric acid or a mixture thereof.
• the solution of poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan in (b) of the first embodiment is coextruded over an extruded food product into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel covering an extruded food product.
• the disclosure concerns a polysaccharide food casing made according to a the process comprising: (1) (a) dissolving polysaccharide in a solvent composition to provide a solution of polysaccharide; (b) extruding the solution of polysaccharide into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel; (c) washing the tube-shaped wet gel with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the tube-shaped wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the tube-shaped wet gel to form a polysaccharide food casing and (2) optionally the solution of polysaccharide in (1) (b) is coextruded over an extruded food product into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel covering an extruded food product, characterized in that the polysaccharide is poly alpha-1,3-glucan and the process does not use carbon disulfide.
• invention or “disclosed invention” is not meant to be limiting, but applies generally to any of the inventions defined in the claims or described herein. These terms are used interchangeably herein. Unless otherwise disclosed, the terms “a” and “an” as used herein are intended to encompass one or more (i.e., at least one) of a referenced feature.
• food casing refers to a flexible, thin, continuous material in the shape of a tube or cylinder, with an inside and an outside surface.
• film refers to a thin, visually continuous material.
• Poly alpha-1,3-glucan is a polymer where the structure of poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan can be illustrated as follows (where n is 8 or more):
• Poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan useful for certain embodiments of the disclosed invention, can be prepared using chemical methods.
• poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan useful for certain embodiments of the disclosed invention can also be enzymatically produced from renewable resources, such as sucrose, using one or more glucosyl- transferase (e.g., gtfJ) enzyme catalysts found in microorganisms as described in the co-pending, commonly owned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0244288 .
• glucosyl- transferase e.g., gtfJ
• a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan is prepared.
• the solvent compositions include but are not limited to aqueous NaOH, aqueous KOH and aqueous tetraethyl ammonium hydroxide.
• Poly alpha-1,3-glucan is mixed into the solvent composition by application of shear.
• the concentration of the solution poly alpha-1 ,3-glucan typically range from about 10 wt% to about 23 wt%.
• Urea CAS Registry Number: 57-13-6
• glycerol CAS Registry Number: 56-81-5
• the amount of urea can be up to the weight of the polymer in the solution, and the amount of glycerol can be varied.
• a method for producing food casings from a polymer solution involves extruding a polymer solution into a coagulation bath (with or without an air gap) followed by removal of the solvent composition.
• a key requirement is when the polymer solution is coagulated in the coagulation bath, the tubular wet gel so formed has enough wet gel strength to survive tensioning from the formation process. It was discovered that high concentrations of poly alpha-1,3-glucan solutions were needed to give adequate strength wet gels. It was further discovered that these high concentration poly alpha-1,3-glucan solutions could be made with high concentration basic solutions or by specific choice of coagulation baths.
• a process according to the present invention for making a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casings compries: (a) dissolving poly alpha-1,3-glucan in a solvent composition to provide a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan; (b) extruding the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel; (c) washing the tube-shaped wet gel with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the tube-shaped wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the tube-shaped wet gel to form a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing, wherein the process does not use carbon disulfide.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan can have a DPw from at least about 400.
• the solvent composition is preferably an aqueous base.
• the aqueous base can be selected from the group consisting of aqueous potassium hydroxide, aqueous sodium hydroxide and aqueous tetraethyl ammonium hydroxide.
• the aqueous base is preferably aqueous potassium hydroxide.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 15 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 8 wt%.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 17 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 8 wt%.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 22 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 11 wt%.
• the solvent composition can further comprise a solubility additive such as urea, a plasticizer additive such as glycerol or a mixture thereof.
• the coagulation bath comprises an aqueous acid or methanol or an aqueous base followed by aqueous acid.
• the aqueous acid is preferably sulfuric acid or acetic acid.
• the coagulation bath can further comprise a salt such as sodium sulfate, potassium sulfate, ammonium sulfate and sodium chloride.
• the tube-shaped wet gel is washed with water until the bath has an approximately neutral pH.
• the tube-shaped wet gel has a breaking stress of at least about 1.5 MPa, preferably about 2.0 MPa and most preferably about 2.5 MPa.
• Water can be removed from the washed tube-shaped wet gel through evaporation to provide the poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing.
• the food casing has a breaking stress from about 10 to about 100 MPa.
• dopes containing higher concentrations of glucan can be made in KOH/water.
• solutions of up to 23% of glucan 550 DPw were made.
• wet gels formed by coagulating films of these solutions were found to have wet gel breaking stress, comparable to that of cellulose wet gels.
• glucan flat wet gel strengths of at least 1.5 MPa can be made.
• Coextruded sausage casings are formed by extruding a polymer solution through a die together with an extruded meat (or other food) emulsion. This coextruded product is then typically passed through one or more coagulation baths and possibly through a dryer. This same process equipment is expected to be used for glucan solutions. Glucan in caustic/water provides satisfactory coatings. Coagulation bath compositions are chosen to dehydrate and neutralize the glucan coating, leaving a wet gel covering the surface of the extruded food. Coagulation baths include alcohols, organic acids such as acetic acid, inorganic acids such as sulfuric acid or HCl, salts such as sodium sulfate and sodium chloride.
• a method for coextruding food casings from a polymer solution involves extruding a polymer solution through an annular coextrusion die to coat the exterior of an extruded food product, such as a sausage, into a coagulation bath (with or without an air gap) followed by removal of the solvent composition.
• a key requirement is when the polymer solution is coagulated in the coagulation bath, the tubular wet gel so formed has enough wet gel strength to survive twisting and tensioning in the remaining process steps. It was discovered that high concentrations of poly alpha-1,3-glucan solutions were needed to give adequate strength wet gels. It was further discovered that these high concentration poly alpha-1,3-glucan solutions could be made with high concentration basic solutions.
• a process according to the present invention for making an extruded food product covered with a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing comprising: (a) dissolving poly alpha-1,3-glucan in a solvent composition to provide a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan; (b) coextruding the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan onto the extrerior of an extruded food product and into a coagulation bath to make an extruded food product covered with a poly alpha-1,3-glucan wet gel; (c) washing the poly alpha-1,3-glucan wet-gel-covered extruded food product with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the poly alpha-1,3-glucan wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the wet-gel-coated extruded food product to form a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing covering the extruded food product, wherein the process does not use carbon disul
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan can have a DPw from at least about 400.
• the solvent composition is preferably an aqueous base.
• the aqueous base can be selected from the group consisting of aqueous potassium hydroxide, and aqueous sodium hydroxide.
• the aqueous base is preferably aqueous potassium hydroxide.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 15 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 8 wt%.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 17 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 8 wt%.
• the poly alpha-1,3-glucan concentration is preferably at least about 22 wt% and the aqueous potassium hydroxide is at least about 11 wt%.
• the solvent composition can further comprise a solubility additive such as urea, a plasticizer additive such as glycerol or a mixture thereof.
• the coagulation bath comprises an aqueous acid.
• the aqueous acid is preferably sulfuric acid or acetic acid.
• the coagulation bath can further comprise sodium sulfate.
• the coextruded food product is washed with water until the bath has an approximately neutral pH.
• the wet gel covering the interior extruded food product has a breaking stress of at least about 1.5 MPa, preferably about 2.0 MPa and most preferably about 2.5 MPa.
• Water can be removed from the washed glucan wet-gel-covered extruded food product through evaporation to provide an extruded food product covered with a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing.
• the casing covering the extruded food has a breaking stress from about 10 to about 100 MPa.
• Food casings of the present disclosure can be used to encase any type of processed meat and sausage type applications. Thus, these casings can have a small diameter or a large diameter. Examples of a variety of processed meats, include but are not limited to wieners, franks, hot dogs, sausages, bologna, cotto salami, smoke ham and other products sliced for sandwiches.
• the present disclosure is directed toward a process for making a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing comprising: (a) dissolving poly alpha-1,3-glucan in a solvent composition to provide a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan; (b) extruding the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel; (c) washing the tube-shaped wet gel with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the tube-shaped wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the tube-shaped wet gel to form a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing, wherein the process does not use carbon disulfide.
• the solvent composition can be an aqueous base.
• the aqueous base can be selected from the group consisting of aqueous potassium hydroxide, aqueous sodium hydroxide and aqueous tetraethyl ammonium hydroxide.
• the solvent composition can further comprise a solubility additive, a plasticizer additive or a mixture thereof.
• the coagulation bath can comprise an aqueous acid or methanol.
• the aqueous acid can comprise aqueous sulfuric acid.
• the coagulation bath can further comprise sodium sulfate, boric acid or a mixture thereof.
• the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan in (b) above can be coextruded over an extruded food product into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel covering an extruded food product.
• the present disclosure is further directed toward a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing made according to a process comprising: (1) (a) dissolving poly alpha-1,3-glucan in a solvent composition to provide a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan; (b) extruding the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel; (c) washing the tube-shaped wet gel with water; (d) optionally, plasticizing the tube-shaped wet gel with a plasticizer additive; and (e) removing the water from the tube-shaped wet gel to form a poly alpha-1,3-glucan food casing, wherein the process does not use carbon disulfide and (2) optionally the solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan in (1) (b) is coextruded over an extruded food product into a coagulation bath to make a tube-shaped wet gel covering an extruded food product.
• DI water is deionized water; "MPa” is megapascal; “NaOH” is sodium hydroxide; “KOH” is potassium hydroxide; “DPw” is weight average degree of polymerization.
• Degree of Polymerization was determined by size exclusion chromatography (SEC).
• the molecular weight of a poly alpha-1,3-glucan can be measured as number-average molecular weight (M n ) or as weight-average molecular weight (M w ).
• the degree of polymerization can then be expressed as DP w (weight average degree of polymerization) which is obtained by dividing M w of the polymer by the weight of the monomer unit, or DP n (number average degree of polymerization) which is obtained by dividing M n of the polymer by the weight of the monomer unit.
• the chromatographic system used was Alliance TM 2695 liquid chromatograph from Waters Corporation (Milford, MA) coupled with three on-line detectors: differential refractometer 410 from Waters, multiangle light scattering photometer Heleos TM 8+ from Wyatt Technologies (Santa Barbara, CA) and differential capillary viscometer ViscoStar TM from Wyatt.
• the software packages used for data reduction were Empower TM version 3 from Waters (column calibration with broad glucan standard, DR detector only) and Astra version 6 from Wyatt (triple detection method without column calibration).
• Thickness of the food casing was determined using a Mitutoyo micrometer, No. 293-831.
• Dry films were measured with a ruler and 2.5x7.6 cm strips were cut using a comfort loop rotary cutter by Fiskars, No. 195210-1001. The samples were then transported to the testing lab where room conditions were 65% relative humidity and 70 °F +/- 2 °F (21 °C +/- 1 °C). The sample weight was measured using a Mettler balance model AE240.
• Poly alpha-1,3-glucan, using a gtfJ enzyme preparation was prepared as described in the co-pending, commonly owned U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2013-0244288 which was published on September 19, 2013 .
• Potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide and sulfuric acid were obtained from EMD Chemicals (Billerica, MA). Glycerol was obtained from Acros Chemicals. Sodium sulfate was obtained from Sigma Aldrich.
• Poly alpha-1,3-glucan polymer powder was dried in a vacuum oven at 40 °C overnight.
• a glucan polymer solution containing 18.5% Glucan with a DPw of 650 was prepared with a solvent that contained 10% KOH in water. These solutions are reported as if the polymer were dissolved in a 10% KOH solution, and this would be possible with enough shear. However, under laboratory conditions, to avoid clump formation, the polymer is first slurried in part of the water and the remainder is added as a more concentrated KOH solution. KOH solutions of 20% to 40% are typically mixed with the glucan powder slurry in water. These blends are hand mixed or stirred with a laboratory mixer, depending on the quantity required.
• Coagulation solution was prepared by dissolving 247 g of sodium sulfate in 570 g of water in a stirred 1 liter beaker on a hot plate, heating to 35 C. Once the sodium sulfate completely dissolved, 133 g of sulfuric acid was added. The solution was cooled to room temperature before using.
• a 18.5% solution of glucan with a DPw of 650 dissolved in a solvent composition containing 10% KOH in water was provided. (This solution based on totals was 18.5% glucan, 8.1% KOH, 73.4% water.)
• Ten to fifteen ml of this solution was poured onto a glass plate.
• a 6-inch wide doctor blade was drawn over the solution to create a 0.010 inch thick cast wet film.
• a glass test tube (dimensions 2 cm diameter x 20 cm long) was rolled over the cast wet film to transfer the cast wet film to the glass tube. The coated test tube was then immediately immersed in the coagulation fluid for 2 minutes to form a tube-shaped wet gel.
• the coated tube was them immediately placed into consecutive baths of deionized water until the water pH was neutral. The coated tube was then placed in a solution of 90% water/10% glycerol for 5 minutes. The tube-shaped wet gel was then loosened, removed from the test tube and transferred to a smaller diameter tube made from a rolled piece of polyethyelene film to dry. The final dry food casing was 25.4 +/- 13 microns thick, 12.7 cm long and had a circumference of 7.1 cm. The final dry food casing was transparent. A strip was cut from the dry food casing and breaking stress measured. The breaking stress was found to be 10 MPa with a max strain to break of 20%.
• poly alpha-1,3-glucan mixture composed of 42% glucan of DPw 800 and 58% water was slurried in 50 g of water. 13.2 g of KOH was dissolved in 34.3 g of water. The KOH solution was then added to the alpha-1,3-glucan slurry and mixed using a lab-scale blender until the polymer was completely dissolved to make a solution of poly alpha-1,3-glucan. The solution was centrifuged for 30 minutes to remove air bubbles. The final solution concentration was 16 wt% poly alpha-1,3-glucan, 8.4 wt% KOH and 75.6% water. The solvent composition defined as the weight of KOH divided by the weight of KOH and water was 10%.
• the solution was extruded through a slot die directly into a coagulation bath.
• the slot dimensions were 254 micron in thickness and 19 mm in width.
• the solution was pumped through the slot die using a syringe pump with a cylinder volume of 100 ml.
• the slot die was slightly submerged into a coagulation bath during operation.
• the coagulation solution was composed of 14 wt% sulfuric acid, 22 wt% sodium sulfate and the rest water.
• the coagulation bath contained roughly 2 I of coagulation bath liquid in a 50 cm long stainless steel vat.
• the solution was pumped through the slot die and contacted with the coagulation liquid to make a film-shaped wet gel.
• the pump rate was varied from 2.5 ml/min to 10 ml/min.
• the wet gel was continuously pulled through the coagulation bath into a water bath.
• the film-shaped wet gel was washed several times in fresh water baths until the pH of the water bath was neutral.
• the film-shaped wet gel thickness was measured to be 102 micron.
• the film shaped wet gel was then dipped into a 3 wt% glycerol bath and then dried under tension.
• the film-shaped wet gel dried to form a clear film with breaking stress of 13 MPa and max strain to break of 40%.
• this example demonstrates a process to make a glucan film by extruding the film into a coagulation bath to make a film-shaped wet gel that has sufficient strength to endure tensioning during the subsequent steps. Due to equipment limitations the die shape used here was a slot die, however, use of appropriate equipment would result in a tubular casing instead of a flat film. Optionally, fluid could be injected into the interior of the extruded tube.
• Hotdogs were placed on a skewer and dipped into poly alpha-1,3-glucan solutions, as indicated below. Hotdogs were weighted before and after dipping and again at regular intervals to measure weight loss due to water evaporation. As shown in the Table below, the hotdogs coated with poly alpha-1,3-glucan (at thicknesses that would be considered typical) lost the same amount of moisture as the uncoated hotdogs. This high degree of permeation would allow water to escape from the meat emulsion during cooking to create the desired texture. It was observed that the coatings shrank with the hotdogs and maintained a tight seal to the hotdogs as the water evaporated from the extruded meat.
• Comparative Examples A, B & C were uncoated hotdogs, attached to skewers, used here for controlled comparisons. Comparative Examples A & B were left under ambient conditions, while Comparative Example C was sealed in a polyethylene bag. Weight losses after 7 days are shown in the Table.
• Example 3 The hotdog on skewer in Example 3 was dipped in the following solution: 10% poly alpha-1,3-glucan (1000 DPw) in a 6.8% KOH/water solution. This hotdog was then immediately dipped into a coagulation solution (26 wt% Na 2 SO 4 /14 wt% H 2 SO 4 ) for 2 minutes. It was then dipped into water and dried under ambient conditions. Its weight was monitored at intervals and the percent weight loss is shown in the Table below. This calculation was made assuming that the dry coating weight was 10% of the original wet coating weight. After the 7-day measurement was completed, the hotdog was sliced open and the coating was examined by microscope. The thickness had a diffuse boundary so the thickness was difficult to determine. However, considering the wet weight that was applied, the thickness was close to 63 microns. Weight losses after 7 days are shown in the Table.
• Example 4 The hotdog on skewer in Example 4 was dipped in the following solution: 10% poly alpha-1,3-glucan (1000 DPw) in a 6.8% KOH/water solution. This hotdog was then hung to dry under ambient conditions for 1 day to allow the coating to dry before coagulation. On day 2, it was dipped into a coagulation solution (26 wt% Na 2 SO 4 /14 wt% H 2 SO 4 ) for 2 minutes. It was then dipped into water and dried under ambient conditions. Its weight was monitored at intervals and the percent weight loss is shown in the Table, below. This calculation was made assuming that the dry coating weight was 10% of the original wet coating weight.
• a coagulation solution 26 wt% Na 2 SO 4 /14 wt% H 2 SO 4
• the Table shows that the poly alpha-1,3-glucan casings allow water to permeate through and be removed from food products. It was observed that as the food product shrinks, the casing shrinks with it to maintain a well-formed casing around the food product.
• a 16.5% poly alpha-1,3-glucan (800 DPw) in a 8.4% KOH/water solution was poured onto a glass plate.
• a doctor blade was drawn over the solution to create a wet film.
• the wet film plus glass plate was immediately immersed in the coagulation fluid for 1 minute to form a flat wet gel.
• the flat wet gel was washed several times in fresh water baths until the pH of the water bath was neutral.
• the flat wet gel thickness was measured to be 120 micron. This was cut into an Instron sample and breaking stress was measured. The breaking stress was measured to be 2.4 MPa and max strain to break was 70%.
• a poly alpha-1,3-glucan layer co-extruded with an extruded food product into a coagulation bath would be strong enough to be pulled through a continuous process.

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• 2015
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